


Qi and Other Diseases

by panjandrum



Category: Original Work
Genre: Dark Fantasy, Original Character(s), Xianxia
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-20
Updated: 2019-01-13
Packaged: 2019-09-23 04:18:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17073323
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/panjandrum/pseuds/panjandrum





	1. 01:01 - Blood & Needles

Three-Eyed Gabriela dipped a needle into the luminescent blue blood, wiped the tip against the vial’s maw, and returned to writing her daily report:

_Speculative Image #3462_

_Seller: Catharine Tibbets_

_Demonic Type: Many-Eyed_

_Verification: Yes_

_Description: Two separate visions of a flood of orphans, directed by a cultivator carrying_ —

 

The click at her door told her of a visitor. He wore ratty mortal clothes, hands in his pockets, and slouched in while repeatedly glancing at her collection of reference tomes. When his eyes drew to hers, he smiled. Gabriela dutifully smiled back. She withdrew a fresh scroll from her right desk drawer and the man imposed himself onto a chair.

The custom chair she had bought yesterday, an investment for her boss’s next visit. It cost fifty taels of silver. It cost the itchy blanket and empty tins currently stuffed beneath her desk. It cost ten weeks. Yet, in less than ten seconds, the man had covered it with his filth.

Gabriela chose to process quickly, so she could clean the chair. She asked, “Name?”

“Keir Lao,” he said while tapping twice against his black hair. He wore leather gloves, stained with many colors of blood.

She wrote his name. “Purpose?”

He pointed at the books and asked, “It’s a wonderful collection, did you borrow them from the Library?”

“Is that your purpose?”

“I’m jealous. This is only my,” he counted with his fingers, “third time in Panopticon and I’d never be let up there, but the knowledge! They’re too expensive to buy. How did you get them?”

_Stop asking questions, already,_ she thought as she stuck the needle into the thickest part of the bamboo scroll. “The public inquiry offices are on the second ring.” She smiled. “Have a good day.”

Keir Lao put up his hands. “Ah, sorry. I do have a memory to sell, though. An Interesting Clue, I think is the term, that I saw on my way here.”

Directing her third eye, Gabriela focused past Keir Lao’s tunic to his heart, counting its beats. She also noticed he lacked a demonic core. She yanked the needle out, made a note, and said, “Standard pricing of three taels of silver. Deposit the clue into the receptacle.”

“Gotcha.” He placed his palm against his forehead.

Then he hummed.

The first crescendo charged directly through Gabriela’s skull, letting the others pierce her mind. Her office windows shook with the hum, the cacophony slaughtering the crowded street rhythm that had always populated her office.

She had never heard a Vocalist as loud. Extraction was always noisy for those people, a reason they were her least favorite sellers, but the volume would always match the memory’s value. She thought he was doing it on purpose.

The Vocalist held his tone while he extracted a white, sharp memory bead from his forehead. He threw his bead into the basin.

The memory liquefied, transforming from white to bright silver. Gabriela quickly made another note and said, “The Library deems the memory complete and without duplication. Would you like your payment now, or upon—“

The bright silver color shifted again, this time to dark steel. Then again, to shimmering pink. Its final shift rested upon a sparkling violet, accompanied by a tripling of the liquid’s volume within the basin.

“This…” Gabriela muttered, thoughts flashing through her head, _Where did a mortal find a Divine Glimpse? Why did he try to sell it as a clue? His heart didn’t reveal the lie. Does he even know? Procedure does not cover this scenario. I need to ask my boss. I need to ask my boss’s boss. I need to ask my boss’s boss’s boss. This annoying Vocalist._ “annoying Vocalist.”

He stood up. “Hey!”

“Stay here,” Gabriela said. She grabbed a blank scroll, a fresh needle, and— her hand hovered over the vials of blood on her desk, her favorite blue or the safe black.

She grabbed the Needle Wasp corpse filled with blue blood. After slapping it to her belt, she secured the basin and walked out into Panopticon. The Library, its ashen tuberous tendrils suspending it in the far sky above the city, was the only part of her crowded surroundings that let her think, _I know what to do_.

 

***

 

The flickering fires of the sun warned of nearing night.

Gabriela thought she had a perfect plan. She would weave through the obelisks, to the Dao Finder docks. There she could fly on a government vessel to the Library. On the trip, she’d write her report. Once arrived, she’d submit it and be promoted for her diligence.

A refreshing chill circled through her as she directed qi down to her legs.

She heard a shout, “Wait!” She peeked behind her, third eye swiveling into her head, past her demonic beast core, brain, and skull, to observe Keir Lao springing forward. “H—” he tried.

Keir Lao really was mortal, as his grip was without qi. In a single step, Gabriela was a few meters away, Keir Lao and the civilian traffic of travelers and traders being slammed to the floor. Even some cultivators found themselves tossed aside by her rush. Normally, such movement in the mortal streets would be forbidden. Today, she had a Divine Glimpse.

Gabriela departed, leaving Keir Lao behind.

The deep violet obelisks were the main buildings of the city, all government run. Flicks of color, any color, would spark from the obelisks and draw up the Library’s tendrils, memories ready for archival.

Flesh scented smog rolled through. It hardened to a taste, sour with impurities. The guards of whichever fire pit it was would lose their jobs if they couldn’t stop the attempted self-refinements.

Polished stairs weaved throughout Panopticon, twisting and diving in whichever motion made the least sense, a vestige from so long ago that large families owned ancient maps of how to navigate them. The steps had their own angles at which they reflected light, piercing through smoke, shining in eyes.

The effect was a mass illusion, where someone many meters away could appear as a shade walking before you, and walls would vanish if you walked up to them at the right angle. It was home to the many-eyed demons and, like all of her type, Gabriela could see through the illusions.

Whump.

She was on the ground. A man wearing white jade robes, a drum the size of another person on his back, was glaring towards her. When she had run into him, it was as though she’d been trampled. She focused away from the crushing sensation, even as her breath refused to return.

He was doubtless a cultivator. Four amulets, of ruby, green jade, a heart, and spirit stone hung around his neck. His cropped brown hair, longer than hers, was wound into a bun atop his head. Glowing bone sandals were pinned through his feet. His robes were oversized, a sign of regency or hidden weapons, or both.

Flicking his sleeve, the dirt Gabriela had imprinted on his robes was swept away. He folded his hands and bent at the slightest angle. “Are you blind?”

“My truest fault,” she apologized.

“Not that,” he said. “I am Daoist Vermillion Drum, Dao Child of the Shimmering River Sect, Golden Core genius at only thirty four years of age, on the very cusp of breaking through to Carved Qi stage. My presence shakes the heavens, and where I step, lesser cultivators worship to gain understanding. My family’s legacy is millions of years long, and I am the rightful heir to it! My merits to my sect are innumerable, and it is by my own grace that I deigned to visit this wretched place. Yet, within minutes of arriving, I suffered an attempted assault. How will you compensate me?”

Gabriela recalled her readings. The sect was Panopticon’s largest exporter of memories, traded out Fire by the Shimmering River. They ruled the wealthiest of the twelve river cities, and had only one Dao Child, their most precious student.

“Well?” he asked.

Drum was important, but she had nothing of value to give him. She looked at the basin. It was more important than him.

She kowtowed and repeated her apology, adding every courtesy she knew. She praised his accomplishments, his sect, and his family. She debased herself. She even held out the few silver tael she had, adding that he was worthy of much more, but she had nothing else, as she was only a lowly government servant.

“Stand up,” he said.

She did.

His hand moved. He gripped her by her skull, over her lower two eyes, as his other hand held open her third eye. Her boots couldn’t touch the ground. Silver clinked. He muttered, “Could be.”

Drum treated her head like an ornate tea cup which he feared would crack if dropped. Gabriela felt falling ten thousand meters would be safer than his hands. With a squeeze, she’d be shattered.

“Rejoice, as I’ll let you repay me with your life, not death. Better yet, you will be no mere servant of mine. It is your great fortune that I am seeking a disciple of my own, as I wish to impart my profound comprehensions. You are mediocre in many ways, but I am magnanimous! As your new master, I shall be responsible for your teachings, so that you may reach great heights. As my new student, you shall be responsible for upholding my teachings, so that none may think lesser of me.” He let go. “Formalize our relationship. Kowtow once more.”

Gabriela reeled. “I-”

“Kowtow.”

_He’ll kill me if I don’t._

A crowd had formed of bored mortals and passionate cultivators. “Why’s she not?” A fat woman asked. “Stunned by her own good luck,” an old man replied.

“Hold on,” said someone from the crowd. Keir Lao, red faced and panting, pushed through the people. “She can’t.”

Drum asked her, “Is this true?”

Gabriela was relieved. She reasoned that if Keir Lao was willing to risk his life by involving himself, he had some mysterious power. With his Divine Glimpse, there was no way he was an ordinary figure, despite his apparent lack of qi. She nodded. “I’ve other duties. I must reject.”

Steel glinted and a cold pressure rested against her throat. A flying sword. Drum roared, “Impudent!”

“If you kill her, you’ll regret it,” said Keir Lao.

Drum laughed. “You have no cultivation. This is the first time in my life that a mortal brat has threatened me.”

Keir Lao frowned. “I’m not threatening you.”

Gabriela regretted trusting him.

Keir Lao continued, “But do you think the city will allow you to kill anyone?”

Gabriela realized the answers were, from least to most important: officially, no; effectively, yes; today, not them. However, the last one only applied if she mentioned the memory. She said, “Daoist Drum, we—”

“I’m done listening!” A second sword flew from his robes towards Keir Lao. The sword in front of Gabriela swung back.

Her other regret was not being important yet.

“Fifty thousand spirit stones,” a deep voice boomed from all directions. The mentioned wealth flooded down, a waterfall of glowing gems. Instead of pooling on the ground, they stopped halfway to form a barrier around Gabriela. She couldn’t see Keir Lao.

She heard a soft clang, then nothing. _Is this Keir Lao’s power?_

A breath later, the spirit stones fell away from her. She saw two shattered flying swords, the crowd with their mouths open, Keir Lao untouched, and Drum kneeling before a bald, six-eyed man in a plain brown robe. Her boss’s boss’s boss, Six-Eyed Iah.

It was her second time seeing him, but the first so close. His silver goatee contrasted his dark cheeks, but neither defined him as well as his six molten-earth like, red russet eyes. Each was supporting his glower.

“Fifty thousand spirit stones,” he repeated, but nothing appeared. Instead, he continued, “Your fine. Ten thousand for attacking a legal visitor, and fifteen thousand for a member of the Panopticon government. Doubled penalty for intent to kill. Truly disgraceful and unethical behavior.”

Iah swept all the spirit stones back into his sleeve before the crowd could move on them. Then he produced a jade slip. “A record of your debt, Daoist. You may stand.”

Drum took the slip with an undisguisable fear, but Gabriela knew it couldn’t be due to the amount. A spirit stone was worth nearly a thousand taels of silver, yet even fifty thousand spirit stones weren’t worth a mention next to a day’s trade by the Shimmering River Sect. They could pay with a smile. She concluded that Iah’s strength frightened Drum, as he walked away while shaking.

“Gabriela,” Iah said.

_He knows my name. Now I should give him my report. Wait, I didn’t manage to finish it. I’ll need to talk to him. Is my uniform in order? Can I clean the chair before he comes inside? Would it be rude to make him wait?_

He asked, “I believe you have something to report?”

“Sir!”

Six-Eyed Iah chuckled. He was a legend who ended the War of Broken Dreams with a revised tax code, and Gabriela’s idol. Yet, instead of a harsh and efficient bureaucrat, Gabriela felt she was looking at an affable middle-aged man.

The sun became the moon as its last fire died.


	2. 01:02 - Measure & Inject

“I propose to this forum for debate, that the no-core are no demons. Since times unknown, we have assumed all living beings as demonic beasts or magical beasts, separated by their thought and form. Yet, the no-core are the only demons defined by lack. Yet, the no-core cannot successfully copulate with other demons. Yet, the no-core have mortals of a fragility several levels below other mortals! We should refer to the no-core as humans; as that which are adjacent to demons.”  
—Philosopher-Warrior Xihua Krell, to the immortal forum of Panacea, ~500,000 years ago. Debate ongoing.

 

***

 

Keir Lao was impressed by the polished wooden interior and comfortable benches of the Dao Finder’s cabin. His only other experience aboard a Dao Finder was the one on which he worked as a deckhand and butcher, spending most his time cutting tumorous growths of meat from the walls, then suturing the wounds.

Seated on the bench across from him were Iah and Gabriela. Iah had explained that Keir Lao’s memory was important, and they would go into more detail in privacy. On the way, they would tour the Library. Keir Lao didn’t trust the two cultivators, but he was willing to take risks to see the Library and hear about his memory.

Having awoken without memories three years ago, he deeply desired answers.

The Dao Finder shook as it landed. Iah stood and suggested, “If you’ll follow me…?”

Keir Lao smiled. “I wouldn’t not,” he said. In his three years of awareness, he’d learned a lesson each year. Lesson one: cultivators were largely petty, vindictive, and power hungry. Lesson two: as a mortal, his survival depended entirely on his charm and wit. Lesson three: worst case, apply lessons one and two to make cultivators fight each other, and be far away when it happens. He wished he could claim Drum’s defeat, but he’d misread the situation, and had almost died.

He resolved to try harder, not that he had a choice. The singular cultivator he trusted was his crewmate, friend, and sometime bodyguard, Just Xin, and it’d taken over a year.

Iah led them from the cabin, up the hall, and out the mouth. As soon as they exited, the massive, golden furred, reanimated bat took flight, and glided back to the firepit-lit shadows of the docks below.

Between them and the interior of the Library was a plain-looking stone door. Iah said, “You are the first mortal to the Library in the last four thousand years.”

Keir Lao had to admit, Iah was very skilled in making people feel special, yet this only grew his suspicion. Someone of a no-doubt ancient age would be capable in untold ways. Keir Lao resolved to remain suspicious, no matter what happened. He smiled and said, “I’ve wanted to see it for a long time, but not for that long.”

Iah clapped, and the door slid slowly open.

The colorful, memory-filled tendrils of the Library were densely packed along the walls and ceiling. Shelf after shelf stood in the center, proudly displaying the largest collection of books and scrolls to ever exist. It stretched on the entire length of the Library, so distant that Keir Lao could only tell the end by the stream of colors. Four-Eyed workers placed or removed items in perpetual activity — chaos, Keir Lao would say, if he wasn’t nearly certain they acted to an ends.

There was plenty of room for the workers to step aside as Iah strolled through a row. He asked, “What do you know about our memory classification, Keir Lao?”

Keir Lao shrugged and intentionally revealed his ignorance by asking, “The better the memory, the more you pay?”

“Gabriela, you may teach.”

“Sir!” She placed her hands behind her back and strode with her head held higher. “Classification is based on the truth of the memory. The closer the memory is to the Dao, the more powerful it is, and thus the more it is worth. Some memories may also be more speculatory despite their accuracy, and that it also assessed. Finally, memories must carry a uniqueness of knowledge to have full value, but minimum pay is still provided to obscure Panopticon’s full knowledge.”

Keir Lao noticed something missing in the explanation. He asked, “But how do you know its truth?”

Gabriela said, “The truth is. Perhaps it is hard to understand, as a mortal?”

Keir Lao shook his head. “Not to be assuming, but what I don’t understand is how you know the truth. Who or what decides, and how?”

“Lies can be understood from intentions,” Gabriela enunciated.

“But what if they’re just wrong?”

Iah interrupted, “Gabriela is correct, but equally, she is not privy to the full and exact methods. This is not her fault, as she is easily the most knowledgeable of the Three-Eyed, but secrecy is necessary for the protection of Panopticon and its citizens. Were I to explain, the memory of it would place you both in danger, in the best case.”

Keir Lao wasn’t satisfied, but couldn’t find excuse to complain. He said, “I think I get it. Something you said before, to the cultivator that attacked us, stood out to me. About unethical behavior? As someone in charge, you must worry about that a lot.”

“I’ve rarely met other cultivators as wise,” Iah complimented. “Were you educated in your clan?”

 _He’s doing it again_ , thought Keir Lao, _but I can’t avoid answering_. “I don’t have a clan.”

“My truest fault for my insensitivity,” Iah said.

Keir Lao was briefly caught off guard that he hadn’t been pushed further, then wondered if that wasn’t part of a plan to create trust. He felt exhaustion over keeping his guard up, and allowed himself to frown. He hoped it’d read as sadness.

They reached the end of the room. A doorway, through which was a spiral staircase of marble, was off to the side. Iah lifted his palm and said, “You’ll see how we write our texts. While not a carefully guarded secret, you’d prefer not to share it widely, else others may assume you know more than you do.” They ascended, leaving behind the unmentioned mystery of the steps further down. Shouting swelled from above.

The circular writing room was smaller than the shelved room, yet still prodigious. Arranged in oblong loops, desk after desk of Five-Eyed hunched atop stools and scrawled, needles over pages. They were shirtless, hundreds more needles plunged into each their backs and necks, faces red and eyes bulging. Fat-stuffed rags plugged their ears. They roared incomprehensibly to the Four-Eyed beside them, who would remove and add needles from detailed leather kits.

“Each needle is infused with a memory, and they synthesize them to text,” Iah explained. “Only the powerful will not be lost among so many foreign thoughts.”

“How do they know which memories to use?” Keir Lao asked.

Iah said, “The room above organizes the kits, but that process is less interesting and more restricted.”

They ascended again, moving past a small hall with two doors on opposite ends, labeled ‘Available’ and ‘Direct’.

“About my memory,” Keir Lao began.

“If you are worried it will not be returned, be assured. All memories share certain qualities,” Iah said. “They cannot be directly replicated or stolen, only extracted or injected with an act of self-will. It is why bandits take them by threat, and why we will never do the same.”

That was what Keir Lao assumed, and wasn’t his topic. “You said it’s important, and maybe that’s because it’s so close to the truth, but just how important is it? I’m only a mortal, and you’re one of the most powerful,” he noticed Gabriela frown, “likely the most powerful cultivator here, yet hosting me. It must be greater than I can imagine.”

Iah motioned to Gabriela, who grinned and said, “Yours is a Divine Glimpse, the closest a memory can be to the truth without being the Dao itself.” She raised her voice. “It represents fundamentals of being, the nature of the five elements, and the will of qi. It’s still debated if it is the domain of literal divine beings, as there exists only untrustworthy second-hand accounts for their existence.”

“Exceedingly well said, Gabriela.” She preened her uniform as they reached the top. “To add, this is the fourth Divine Glimpse I have ever encountered. I possess but one, instrumental to my growth, my alliance with the other Six-Eyed, and ultimately the founding of Panopticon beyond a millennia of millennia ago.”

“Over a million years!” Gabriela shouted.

 _This is bad_ , thought Keir Lao. _A million years? And why didn’t she already know? His sharing is still suspicious. This is dangerous._ “Oh.”

The top room was a semicircle with six doors. Iah said, “Let’s discuss further, inside my office.” He walked towards the rightmost door, but Gabriela rushed ahead. She struggled with it briefly until Iah made a subtle motion, at which point she presented the open door, back straight, but head tilted low and away.

Keir Lao didn’t dislike her bowing and scraping behavior, because he was pretty sure he’d do the same in her position, at least to appear loyal. He chewed at his cheek and thought, _Is that age even possible, and how powerful does that make him?_

The most powerful cultivator ever witnessed by Keir Lao was during his first year of awareness. He’d lived in the poor outskirts of Huisheng. Ignorant, he resisted when cultivating bandits came to steal. They beat him for amusement, and though he learned not to resist, he became their toy to be abused daily. Eventually, another cultivator arrived.

Unlike the bandits, she appeared dignified, and wore dark green glowing robes. Keir Lao risked asking her for help, but she ignored him as the bandits beat him again. It was chance that Keir Lao was left groaning atop his own blood, far away, when one of the bandits said something she didn’t like. In response, she leapt to an unseen height.

The bandits panicked and sprinted in every direction. She dropped like a meteor, and when she slammed the earth, it rose like waves. The angry terrain shot towards all the bandits at once, cascading into them, crunching and mulching.

She then walked to Keir Lao, picked him up, and dropped him at the site. “This is all you are,” she said, and forced him — pained and retching — to pick through the slurry of mud and guts for her bounty.

She thanked him for the gifts on her two thousandth birthday, and left.

Iah’s office was small, more than Gabriela’s. He strode to his desk and seated himself on a stool, just like those below. Otherwise, the room contained a second stool, a chandelier, a tall stack of papers resting against a green jade statue of Iah with a flowing scroll, and a window presenting half the city, which the statue gazed sidelong upon.

Keir Lao sat and wondered, _Other than the statue, isn’t this too simple for a powerful cultivator?_

Gabriela marched to a corner and stood like a statue herself, though she glanced towards Iah before returning to a steely gaze. Iah withdrew the basin from his robes and set it open in front of him. Next he withdrew a thin, ornately carved rod. Dragons wove through clouds, devouring finely detailed beasts. Probing the memory, he said nothing. Gabriela glanced many more times as her smile slipped to an ever-deeper frown.

The rod vanished back into his robes, and Iah slid a spirit stone from his sleeve to his palm. He regarded it for a moment, then said, “Under normal circumstances, the current value of a Divine Glimpse would be two hundred and thirty billion, five hundred and fifty five million, nine hundred and eleven thousand, and four spirit stones.”

The number was so large as to be meaningless to Keir Lao.

He could not imagine it. Even Gabriela had a growing look of confusion. Yet, if Keir Lao could fully comprehend, he still would not care. He knew of nothing in the world that could extend his life beyond cultivation. It was his only path to security, and he suspected the glimpse and his missing memories would be the guide. He asked, “Under normal circumstances?”

“Yours is worth less than that, less than nothing,” Iah said. “It is poison to the Dao.”

Keir Lao could only ask, “How?”

Iah pointed to the liquid within the basin. His finger traced just above the surface, as if tracking something. “Any memory without context will turn will turn against itself. This was brewing deep in your mind, unconnected from anything that would give it truth. It starved and devoured its own meaning, becoming a lie. This is a rare problem for average memories, reserved for those who extract so many they lose all sense of self, and keep extracting. This happening to such a grand truth is altogether a greater problem. If I placed it within my own mind, madness or death would be the most probable outcomes.” Shoulders slumped and fingers steepled, he asked, “Please forgive my forwardness, but how long ago?”

 _There’s no point in hiding it anymore._ “Three years.”

“And where you awoke?”

“Huisheng.”

“There are three possibilities. Someone discovered how to steal memories directly, you prefered ego death to physical death, or…”

“Or I wanted to forget everything.”

Iah nodded. “All three project extreme danger. I can offer you merely an opportunity to rediscover that danger, if that’s the path you wish to travel. Think deeply. Is that your path?”

Keir Lao knew if he did not, his death as a mortal was certain. He had thought deeply for three years, through hope and pain. His answer was an unspoken yes, but he wouldn’t abandon suspicion. He asked, “What do you want? The glimpse, complete?”

“I’m giving you an opportunity, so ethically I should have only an opportunity in return.” Iah withdrew a scroll from his desk, tapped it once, and unfurled it. At the top, in bold lettering, it read **PANOPTICON DAO FINDER CONTRACT**. “I’ve modified it. Two hundred thousand spirit stone loan to purchase a vessel, crew, and supplies, and permission to travel anywhere as an official agent of Panopticon. If and when you’ve mended your memory, you owe the loan and interest. If you cannot pay normally, you must sell the glimpse, and be paid the remainder. The only other requirement is regular reports, based on which I may approve additional loans or cancel the contract, though you’ll only need to return what you can. For that purpose, your assistant and liaison will be Three-Eyed Gabriela.”

She blurted out, “Sir?”

“Is that vital?” Keir Lao asked.

“An assistant? Yes. Gabriela? No, but I cannot recommend any better study of our regulations, or on information about other cities. I have great trust in her.”

Gabriela swayed slightly.

Keir Lao couldn’t find any good reason Iah would lie about it, under circumstance, though assumed it wasn’t all lies. That was possible, but he had no clues. “Can I think about it? Look over the contract?”

“I insist you do,” Iah said. “Making money will be approximately as difficult as finding your memories. You are unusually clever, but mortal, and I am unaware of any trade not dominated by the vastly more powerful. If you accept, it will be nearly certain you end your journey without your glimpse. That is not to put you down, but a truth I am obligated to share.”

“What about my glimpse, for now?”

Iah pushed forward the basin. “It was yours and is yours, accept or reject. It will not harm you the same as it would others, but it will try to trick you, lead you towards truth and then shove you into lies.”

Keir Lao looked into the liquid, his reflection distorted. He took a breath, and plunged his head in.


	3. 01:03 - Treatment & Care

_Patient,_ **_Vertebrae_ ** _: Sleeping. Action taken: Medication. Results: Sleep persists._

 _Patient,_ **_Mother_ ** _: Meditating. Action taken: Amputation. Results: Regeneration._

 _Patient,_ **_Curse_ ** _: Reading. Action taken: Fed. Results: Violence, forced to subdue._

 _Patient,_ **_Y. E._ ** _: Sketching. Action taken: None. Results: Diagrams have improved._

 _Patient,_ **_Full_ ** _: Dissolving. Action taken: None. Results: Effects linearly stable._

 _Patient,_ **_Nao Nao_ ** _: Dead. Action taken: Cremated. Results: Experiment failure._

 _Patient,_ **_4_ ** _: Cultivating. Action taken: Sparred. Results: No mental changes._

 _Patient,_ **_Baseline_ ** _: Crying. Action taken: Informed of_ **_Nao Nao_ ** _. Results: Despondency._

 _Patient,_ **_Half_ ** _: Eating. Action taken: None. Results: Complex, see extended results._

 _Patient,_ **_Re-Xi-Wong_ ** _: Missing. Action taken: Delegated. Results: Pending._

 _Patient,_ **_Tanfang_ ** _: Smiling. Action taken: Questioned. Results: Lucid, but inaccurate._

 

***

 

Keir Lao stepped towards the silver pagoda. Radiating from it was sobbing and screaming, and the pleasant, pungent scent of sterile decay.

His robes were of off-white plain cloth, stained lightly around the collar and cuffs by some unknown substance. He carried himself with an exacting purpose, as though every step closer was the result of a confident calculation. A scalpel rested in his palm.

The patients were locked to the pillars, as always. They raved and pleaded to him as he walked dispassionately through the open interior. If he listened to just one, they might share with him their madness. Besides, it was best to let the others assist them, as Keir Lao’s personal patients could not be delayed.

He walked-ran-jumped-climbed-flew further up, all and none at once.

 

***

 

Recomposing himself, he lightly cursed his inefficiencies, and mentally noted the need to re-examine his internal structure for stability. The incidents were accelerating in frequency, but were merely one in a score of problems facing him.

Keir Lao moved through his experiments, up through Tanfang’s.

Overall, Keir Lao was annoyed by the results, as they were slower than he desired. Further, over half his patients expressed some form of disapproval or defiance, a condition which he thought he’d extinguished. He theorized it was due to his recent prolonged absence, resulting in an inability to continue conditioning.

Only the twelfth remained: _Patient,_ **_Primeval_ **. For that, he had high hopes.

Primeval, white-haired and green-eyed, rested awake in his cot. He rolled out of bed when he noticed Keir Lao, and picked himself off the floor with his twelve arms. Expression haggard, he begged, “Water?” His bark-like flesh flaked as he spoke.

“Water,” Keir Lao said. He produced a waterskin and passed it over.

Primeval stole it to his lips. He drank ceaselessly, sucking even the air from the container to acquire the last mists of liquid. When he finished, he tore the waterskin with claws, ate it, and begged again, “Water?”

Keir Lao then produced a copper flask. “No. Something else. Better.” As Primeval drank that too, he watched closely. The old man coughed and choked between greedy sips, but did not complain, though crushed the flask more tightly each time. Some of the shining burgundy liquid rolled down his chin, and dripped to the metal floor. He contorted himself to wipe it up, and onto his tongue.

“Please, please, water,” he said when done. “Water, water, please!” As he repeated his request, his flesh began to slough. His muscles spasmed. His joints vibrated. From his back, two growths pulsed. “Water, please! Water, please!” He dropped to his knees, hugging himself with all his arms. At once, the growths elongated, and Primeval howled. They shook, sub-growths sprouting and dying, like the entire life of trees. Popping resonated.

Sweat flooded out from him, and back in. The trees finished their cycle, and settled to limbs. The now fourteen armed man whispered, “Water.”

Keir Lao was delighted. He produced another waterskin as a reward.

Sixteen, eighteen, twenty, thirty, fourty, sixty.

Keir Lao backed to the wall. Arms multiplied from arms, and Primeval’s wailing echoed in several voices. As the mass of grasping hands grew, the floor bent. It grabbed everything near, pulling it to its center. Light shined back out.

It seized Keir Lao, its fingers chewing into his flesh. He was passed from palm to palm without a chance to resist, drawing closer to the light. He laughed.

He craned his neck up, and bit into the next arm reaching for him, his teeth sinking into the syrupy pulp. It tried to pull back, yet Keir Lao had firm hold as he engorged himself further. The arms, desperate, switched to pushing him away, but it was futile. By force and hunger, Keir Lao devoured his way deeper into the mass, desperate for the source of the light, for the truth, for the Dao, for his first success on the long path he’d chosen.

For his first satisfying meal, of presumably many.

 

***

 

Brushing a palm leaf away, Gabriela bit into a magical fruit, experiencing the pulp and sweetness. She savored it, a rare and expensive delicacy, offered to her for free within the high-end clinic. The sickroom was like a jungle with its exotic medicinal plants, and she was allowed to use as much she liked, as the one looking over the patient, Keir Lao.

He was passed out within the decadent bed. He’d fallen unconscious after taking in the memory, and Iah had her carry Keir Lao to the most prestigious clinic in the city, on the outermost ring. Gabriela had no money, but was granted the Six-Eyed seal, which was in many ways superior within Panopticon. Iah’s only other orders were to build trust with Keir Lao, and assist him in making his decision.

A water clock ticked over and chimed, indicating it was midday, when the sun would blaze with its greatest disdain.

Keir Lao shook within his bed, not yet awake. He thrashed at the sheets. His hands pulled out, and Gabriela noticed they were ungloved, covered in layer over layer — like a mass grave — of scars. She had to reach over to stop him when he began to chew into them.

After a brief struggle she easily won, he calmed, and awoke. He then struggled slightly again, and whispered, “Please let go.”

She did, and gave him an odd look. He was pale and sweating, and kept flexing his fingers. He stared at them, and then dug under the sheets. When his hands re-emerged, they were again covered in his stained leather gloves. He took a deep breath and turned to her.

“Can memories be,” Keir Lao grasped at the air, “not literal? Can you experience things that didn’t happen, but take the place of an idea?”

Gabriela thought momentarily, and said, “There are only two ways that could occur. The first would be if your memory mixed with others and you saw events that were a blend of multiple, but that wouldn’t be possible with a glimpse, which would overpower all else. The second would be if the memory was experienced like that, as though you were on perception altering medicinal pills.”

Keir Lao mouthed something to himself. After, he asked, “Then, what happened in my memory, really happened?”

“No. Remember what Six-Eyed Iah said? It is a lie. The bigger the conclusion you try to draw from a poison memory, the more likely it is to be foolish. The truth, to the extent it still exists, is in the specific details, and in your case, the missing ones.” She paused, then grabbed a fruit to offer to him. He put his arms up, and shook his head severely. She set it aside and continued, “The more salient something was, in either its presence or absence, the more likely it contains an element of truth. As a whole, it’s attempting to lead you astray. Was the glimpse partially out of order, or have any pieces where it ‘split’?”

He nodded.

“Pay attention in those places. Anything else in the memory is more likely to be false than true, something to make you doubt your path and lead you from the Dao.” She picked up the fruit, and took a bite. She hoped she’d explained things properly, as she was reiterating information given to her by Iah.

Keir Lao let out a long breath, almost six seconds. Relief spread over his face, and he gave her a large smile. “Thank you, Gabs. That really helps.”

For the first time since meeting him, Gabriela felt Keir Lao wasn’t all that bad. Then she processed the nickname. “Only refer to me as Gabriela, Three-Eyed Gabriela, or assistant to Six-Eyed Iah,” she said.

“Aren’t you supposed to be my assistant?” he asked.

“Only if you engage the contract,” she said. “In reference to said contract, I have it with me when you’re ready to read it. I can answer any questions on details that confuse you.”

He said, “I need to get to the docks. The Dao Finder I work on is leaving soon, and I want to talk to Just Xin.”

“Just Xin?”

“Big guy, can’t talk, he’s my friend. I trust his opinion.”

“You want an opinion from someone who can’t talk?”

“Yes. Are the docks far from here?”

They were not far, but the medical master of the clinic had recommended Keir Lao rest the entire day. Before Gabriela could answer, Keir Lao sprang from the bed, as quick as she’d seen a mortal move. She grabbed him by the arm and flipped him back onto the bed, quicker. “No, but you need rest,” she said.

Keir Lao resumed breathing. “I’m not signing the contract unless I get to talk to him,” he threatened.

 _I can’t let that happen_ , Gabriela thought. _Is he bluffing? It doesn’t matter, even if he is, this is a chance to build trust._ She cleared her throat. “I understand. If you tell me more of his appearance, I could fetch him for you?”

“I want to explain myself.”

Gabriela felt weary. _I suppose he seems healthy enough now, for a mortal. I hope this doesn’t get us in trouble._ “Fine,” she snapped, then realized. “Ah, I meant, that’s fine. Let me help you up.” She offered out her hand.

He ignored it, and got up again.

The third and outermost ring of the city was also the highest and wealthiest. The most important cultivators and clans lived there, as it was closest to the wealth, opportunity, and danger of the forest. Further, Panopticon offered high bounty and prestige to those that contributed defense in magical beast attacks. Everyone else was taxed to even leave the city, except by the safety of Dao Finder.

Only one section of the ring was broken, the direct line from the center bowl of the city to the docks at the border. From any of the rings, the only way down besides a long and convoluted series of stairs, was to jump.

When they reached that break, she scooped up Keir Lao.

Directly downward was one thousand meters. They passed the many windows in the side, the underring apartments that housed branch clans. Gabriela cycled her qi to her feet for landing, and arms to cushion Keir Lao’s impact. Normally, she’d be unable to fall that far unharmed, but the area was designed for such jumping with a porous, somewhat flexible stone, fit for all but the weakest or mortals. Cultivators strong enough to break through it were also skilled enough to land graciously.

Thinking of the details had helped Gabriela somewhat ignore Keir Lao’s hollering. She couldn’t tell if he’d been frightened or having fun.

She pried him from around her neck, and he stumbled around a bit before walking properly. She reminded him, “Weren’t you worried of your friend leaving?”

Keir Lao huffed. “Right, the docks are right over there, so he should be—”

Following his gaze, Gabriela looked beyond the busy pathway where they lingered, towards the docks. Dao Finder vessels, silent and still, were crammed into vast cavernous stalls. Traders and captains bustled through, trying to get the best prices from each other. Her eyes rested on a large purple beetle departing from the docks, and out into the thick, magical beast filled forest that seperated Panopticon from all other cities.

“They left,” said Keir Lao, slouching.

Gabriela then noticed a cultivator hammering towards them from afar. He was near the tallest she’d ever seen, and definitely the overall largest. _Did we do something to offend him?!_ She dropped into her combat stance, and withdrew a needle. Wrapped around his legs were ribbons of visible green qi, trailing behind him to nothingness; a Dancer, and a Palm-Foot demon. She prepared for multiple angles of attack while readying her own, qi cold like steel.

“Calm down Just Xin!” Keir Lao shouted.

Just Xin flipped back, stopping. He looked down to Keir Lao with a grin of embarrassment, and gave her the same. He put his hands together and bowed deeply. She hesitated, then half-heartedly returned the gesture. At once, she was swept up in a one-armed hug, then dropped.

“And thanks for staying,” said Keir Lao. Just Xin hugged him, too.

Before Gabriela could speak, a great force slammed onto the docks, a seven-headed duck the size of a palace crashing in, oozing blood and spewing mist. As the mist spilled over the fleeing bystanders, their screams went silent, and when it passed from them, statues stood in their place. A massive obsidian spike slid out of the duck’s body. Its heads collapsed into a pile, and one slammed against a gigantic black spider, sending more blood, mixed with venom, shooting out. Three cultivators, robes torn but with triumphant looks, emerged over the duck’s back.

Gabriela considered helping out, but decided to prioritize her mission with Keir Lao. The destruction was not an abnormal occurrence, and the dock workers could handle it.

Though far away from the disaster, Gabriela, Keir Lao, and Just Xin were pushed apart by fleeing crowds. Due to the commotion, Gabriela barely witnessed a young girl, an orphan, steal past Just Xin. She called out to him, and pointed out the orphan.

One of Just Xin’s qi ribbons shot out and caught the girl by the ankle. She struggled and pleaded as another one of his ribbons took his pouch from her.

He then reached in, handed her two taels of silver, and let go.

She looked at him, confused. Those choosing to watch the scene were equally confused. Even Gabriela barely understood. _She’s doesn’t have a clan or sect, and is guaranteed to die pointlessly. What a waste of resources._

Yet, the girl adjusted quickly enough, and snapped the silver from Just Xin’s hand. She then ran away, seemingly before Just Xin could find his sense. Gabriela noticed she was fast; a young orphan with a surprising amount of cultivation.

She strode up to Keir Lao and Just Xin, and said, “We should leave while that gets cleaned up.”

“Where?” Keir Lao asked.

“Six-Eyed Iah was gracious enough to—” she reached for the Six-Eyed seal, and found it gone. “—allow you stay within my clan’s home.”

Gabriela was sure her clan would welcome guests, keeping Keir Lao happy while she retrieved the seal from wherever the orphan had gone. Even so, she did not look forward to seeing her mother, her grandmother, her great grandmother, and so on to the clan matriarch. Least of all, her brother.


	4. 01:04 - Break & Fracture

Keir Lao politely accepted the steaming honey wine — a specialty of Panopticon’s — offered to him by Gabriela’s grandmother, Constanza. She looked barely older than Gabriela herself, though shorter and with curling brown hair near to the floor. On the left side of the low and clothed stone table was Just Xin, and on the right, Gabriela. Once Keir Lao held the drink, Constanza returned across from him.

Any other day, he’d enjoy a drink or five while swapping pleasantries and stories. As it was, the nauseatingly sweet taste from the memory still on his tongue, the thought of drinking the wine repulsed him. Though, he also did not want to offend, so drank anyway, angling the ornate cup to hide his grimace as he forced himself to swallow.

Constanza gave him a thin smile, and he found his cup snatched from him as she said, “I’ll fetch you broth, instead.” She went to the stove, a slab of meat boiling within a pot, and poured the broth to a fresh cup. She returned, offering again. She said, “You know, I have some great stories of magical beasts I’ve hunted. My first time…”

Keir Lao took it, wondering how she noticed his distaste, because he was certain he’d hidden it in a natural way. He couldn’t figure out if her perception was a personal trait, or something broader, and planned to ask Gabriela later. He half listened to Costanza as he thought.

“...bounty of two hundred spirit stones for its magical beast core…”

The Sosa clan drinking room was well decorated with exceptional paintings; every hall and room Keir Lao had passed was equally adorned. The size of the entire home astonished him, housing hundreds of clan members in the little he’d seen of the first floor, and even more shocking was its small size compared to the neighboring clans.

“...its terrible, flesh-rending claws, and life-ending poisoned tongue…”

He mulled over his memory a bit more. He’d yet to figure out what it meant, and didn’t entirely trust that he hadn’t been, in some way, evil. He thought it made sense; most cultivators were selfish, and he was especially terrible. He would have been punished for, having his memories removed and forced to become mortal.

“...unlike this other beast, fourth-tier I’ll have you know. I should have died, but…”

It was only a guess, but one that haunted him as much as the memory itself. He wasn’t sure if what Iah and Gabriela had told him was entirely true, though. He considered another possibility that the memory wasn’t the same as the one he’d taken out, and Iah tricked him into accepting it to steal the real glimpse. His scarred hands suggested otherwise, a mystery solved, but he couldn’t discard the possibility.

“...sacrificing a foot to save me. Out of gratitude, I married him…”

His head was abuzz with such theories when three women entered.

Keir Lao recognized Josefina, Gabriela’s mother, in the back. The middle woman was also young looking, and Four-Eyed. The woman in front, however, was decrepit, with gnarled skin and long, emaciated limbs. Constanza and Gabriela kowtowed on sight, declaring, “Matriarch Sosa!” Four of the matriarch’s five eyes regarded a different person in the room, darting wildly, with the lower left clouded over and unmoving. Just Xin kowtowed as well, and Keir Lao followed.

Matriarch Sosa stalked towards them. She asked, “The first thing you return with is guests?” Her voice betrayed no emotion.

Gabriela lifted her head. “On behalf of Six-Eyed Iah,” she said.

“Hmm.” Matriarch Sosa circled around the table, saying, “Yet you have not earned your fourth eye?”

Keir Lao thought, _Something’s off. Even Constanza doesn’t have her fourth eye. Why would they expect Gabriela to have hers?_

“I am sure I will earn it when—”

“As am I, but in far futures unseen.”  The matriarch stopped behind her. “Where is your proof?”

Gabriela did not respond, frustration covering her face.

 _Proof? Do they think she’s a liar? Although, that does mean she lied to us earlier when she said Iah ‘allowed’ us to stay in her clan home. But why?_ Keir Lao, in an attempt to learn more, said, “Respectfully, I’m not sure what’s the matter here, but I can confirm she’s working with Six-Eyed Iah.”

Matirarch Sosa stepped onto the table and squatted in front of Keir Lao, grabbing him under the chin and manipulating his head as she pleased, eyes focused on different pieces of him. She was not forceful, but Keir Lao could not form any resistance. “What does a no-core mortal know of the Six-Eyed? Either you came to this home to tell lies, or you belong to some impossibly important foreign clan. By our hospitality I will not have you to answer, but offer more than your word or stay silent.”

Keir Lao realized his mistake, that he could not prove it without a memory he shouldn’t share, and chose silence. She released her hold and returned to the doorway.

Before leaving, she ordered, “You will visit your brother tonight, to remind yourself.” Josefina and the other woman trailed out behind her.

Keir Lao mused, _If her family doesn’t trust her, can I trust her? But they’re also cultivators, so is it her family being unreasonable? And what does her brother have to do with it?_ He couldn’t figure it out with what he knew, thus decided he’d try to learn more later and, for the time being, further interrogate what he learned from glimpse.

Constanza forced them to remain seated and drinking as she continued recounting kills from her one hundred and fifty years of life.

 

***

 

Just Xin stretched. His qi rolled through his limbs, cycling from and back to his diantian. It was an exercise for calming himself, that he liked to do before bed. As he focused onto his motions, Keir Lao approached him and said, “I haven’t seen Gabriela in twenty minutes, and I want to know what she’s doing.”

Without doubting, Just Xin agreed. Keir Lao had not yet explained the full situation to him, but he trusted Keir Lao, and believed him when he’d mentioned Six-Eyed Iah. Keir Lao was one of the few that shared his view of the world, that everyone should be doing more to help others. It was the philosophy by which Just Xin found the will to cultivate, and to give assistance his truthful expression.

He further believed Keir Lao would be safe for the night, and went to find Gabriela. He still felt embarrassed for almost attacking her earlier, but was too used to cultivators bullying Keir Lao.

As a Dancer — unlike a Vocalist, Symbolist, or Meditator — his qi was innately visible, but he could sense qi of past and intent, if he’d recently contacted its owner. He had to walk around before feeling the cold prickle of Gabriela’s. He followed it through halls and rooms, occasionally bowing to Sosa clan members, until he found himself descending into the basement.

It was a mausoleum with urns of the dead, each labeled with the name of a Sosa clan member. Fat-burning lanterns shed light. Deep into it, Gabriela’s trail lingered in front of a single urn, the plaque reading ‘Lucas Sosa’. The qi there was brittle with sadness, and Just Xin felt a familiar pang in his heart.

He considered returning to Keir Lao, and leaving Gabriela her secrets. Then he noticed her trail continued back up and, not towards any rooms, but out the home entirely. Just Xin suspected her exit was for another purpose, and a chance to help her or Keir Lao, depending how he could help the most.

Just Xin left and jogged far through the city, trying to go slow enough that there would be hardly a chance they’d encounter each other. After a good amount of time, he found her trail entered a locked office. Peering through the barely illuminated window, he saw a small room with a mess of papers, and could barely feel that she had experienced intense frustration and joy within.

The door was the only exit, so he continued from there. He eventually passed through heavy black smog that made up the city’s forbidden zone. Within, the Library’s tendrils were withered and dead, the buildings crumbling and abandoned, and the obelisks radiated an unusual red light. It was troublesome to breath without giving into the itching need to cough.

Just Xin knew the stories. It was forbidden because living there would surely embed heavy impurities into anyone, which were difficult to remove and, in mere decades, cause death. They came from a nameless cultivator who’d appeared countless years ago and, body wrecked from alchemy abuse, began to refine himself in the city’s hottest fire pit. To that day he remained, purging himself as his miasma spread.

Further in, Just Xin felt a second trail of qi. Both at once confused him at first, but separated them out. He tried to put a face to it, and recalled the orphan girl.

He worried she’d stolen from Gabriela, too, and that Gabriela might hurt her trying to get it back. No longer caring of not being seen, he followed the trails at a sprint, choosing Gabriela’s where they divided. The sensations grew stronger the closer he got, and he began to pick up on current emotions. Gabriela’s was a cold resolve, and the orphan’s a patient panic.

Vision poor, he managed to stop himself a few meters short of running into Gabriela’s back.

She twitched toward him as though to strike, but refrained. “There’s another one,” she said.

Whatever it was that she lost, he thought she should abandon it, and leave the orphans be. He grabbed her by the shoulder and tugged, motioning from where he came. Her intent was imbedded into the floor.

“Another one,” a feminine voice declared. “Why don’t you two useless shits crawl back up whatever pitiful asses crapped you out, and leave we poor orphans alone? It’s not our fault if you’re too exceptional to keep track of your things.” Childish laughter, from much more than two orphans, unfurled from the surroundings.

A heavy wind blew some smog away, and stood there was a teenage girl with a blonde ponytail, and a sneering expression. With one hand she smoked a dark gold, cloth-wrapped medicinal herb, and her other hand rested on the totemistic wooden staff hanging from her back.

She exhaled a large cloud of smoke, dropped the herb, and stomped it out. “Last chance,” she said.

Just Xin squeezed on Gabriela’s shoulder, trying to signal for her to do anything but fight. Several difficult expressions washed over her, and Just Xin had trouble decoding her emotions. Finally, she said, “We’ll leave, but there’s something I absolutely must return with. I could offer you many things in return. Magical food? Weapons? Recommendations to a sect to call home? What is your name?”

The teen sniffed, eyes shimmering, voice shaking as she mocked, “Oh, you’d really help us? Oh, benevolent Many-Eyed. Oh, bless your farts as you pass.” She grinned wildly. “My name is Lilli, and I don’t need your pity, even if you were telling the truth. I’m gonna smack your face ‘til you die of shame, strip your body down to the last crap-covered cloth, and display your ugly corpse for all to see.”

Gabriela made various choking noises, and Just Xin sensed her anger.

Lilli drew her staff, and pointed it towards Just Xin. “Heard what you did, so I’ll spare you that awful fate. It’s against my sense of right and wrong to beat up the severely brain damaged. Leave the incompetent government tool with us.”

Then she lunged forward, staff hurtling sideways towards Gabriela.

With only a needle, Gabriella struck back against the staff, knocking it off course. In the same motion, Lilli’s free hand smacked against Gabriela’s face, leaving her with a red cheek and shocked expression.

To sense her qi, Just Xin extended towards Lilli, but as her staff touched against the ground, she leveraged it to avoid him. He felt Gabriela’s humiliation and growing anger, and that dangerous amounts of qi was gathering into her needle. He whirled between them, forcing her build-up of qi to stop.

Just Xin gambled that if he could get the staff out of the teen’s hand’s, he could use it to negotiate. His qi ribbons shot out, trying to find any hold, but his ribbon passed through the staff like nothing was there. Lilli laughed.

“What’s the matter, you can’t beat a trashy clanless kid like me? Guess that’s make you less than trash.”

Gabriela vaulted over Just Xin’s back. Qi exploded out her needle, forming and expanding it to the size of a spear as she flew through the air. Just Xin reached up with his a ribbon, wrapping it around her weapon, and sent her attack impaling through the earth, just short of Lilli. Gabriela shouted at him, “Who’s side are you on?!”

“Wow, your brain damage is worse than I thought.” Lilli lifted her weapon high, and slammed it down towards Gabriela’s skull. Just Xin used the opportunity, and danced forward to the take the strike on his own head as he grabbed the teen’s elbow. Though he succeeded, the impact made him unusually dizzy, and his vision hazy.

But he didn’t need to see, or plan his movements.

He felt the teen’s intention to wrench from his grasp. He effortlessly timed with her movement, spinning her around. She planned to drop low, and when she did, he reached out with his right foot and grabbed her other arm. He twisted just enough to open a small wound at her shoulder, having her release the staff as she cursed, “Fuck your grandmother!”

He pushed her back and picked up the staff, solid. He tested it with a ribbon again, and it passed through as last time.

Lilli regained her balance, and whistled loudly. Hundreds of orphans burst from the smog in every direction, letting out a high pitched war cry, charging with makeshift weapons and showing off their cultivation techniques, uncoordinated flashes of color and noise.

One moment Gabriela was on the ground, and the next she’d shot in front of Lilli, before Just Xin could react. He could only notice that some of Lilli’s blood bridged the gap. The Three-Eyed captured the teen, and held a needle just against her throat. The orphans slowed, and stopped in a circle surrounding them.

With surprising calmness, Lilli said, “I’ve trained every one of them in cultivation, and they’d murder you easily. But, you’ve sure got me, and could probably kill a lot before they kill you. It’s a standstill.”

“Here is what shall occur,” Gabriela said in a no less calm tone, and yet a harsher one. “I’ll leave with you, and take you to the proper authorities. They will decide what to do with you. Guards will be sent to round up their orphans, and whether they catch them will be another matter. If you return to me what you stole right now, I won’t hold a grudge, and can encourage the guards to give only a token effort.”

The orphans booed.

“Nah,” Lilli remarked. “As long as you try to leave, my buddies will stop you, so don’t try. You can’t hurt me without getting hurt. Here’s how it’ll really go. Your silent buddy over there?” She pointed her middle finger towards Just Xin. “I can tell he’s a big softy based on our fight, wouldn’t dream of doing anything that’d hurt we poor orphans.” She chuckled. “So let him figure out something to break the standstill. No clue what, but I’m betting my life he’d try really hard.”

Just Xin approached the two. Gabriela said, “Fine. Just Xin, I am carrying a scroll, a contract meant for Keir Lao. Take it to him, if he signs it he may be able to resolve this situation in a mutually non-murderous fashion.”

With great concern, Just Xin reached into Gabriela’s uniform. He sensed the slightest hint of her intention guide him, not just to the scroll, but another scrap of paper. He took both, and backed away. Lilli watched him.

He turned and left, through the crowd of orphans parting for him, and eventually out the forbidden zone. He regarded the scrap of paper, a note from Gabriela written in what he could sense was Lilli’s blood.

_Please, inform the guards. The orphans won’t be killed if they don’t resist._

Just Xin’s stomach twisted. He didn’t believe things would go that smoothly. He planned to try Keir Lao’s contract first and, meanwhile, weigh the lives of the orphans against Gabriela’s.


	5. 01:05 - Triage & Prognosis

Keir Lao was having trouble sleeping, tossing in the bedroll provided to him. Every section of his mind was still focused on his memory’s meaning, Iah’s offer, and Gabriela’s actions.

He heard Just Xin enter, and sat up. Just Xin passed over a scroll and a note, and another piece of paper quickly scrawled upon. The scroll was the contract, the note mentioned guards and orphans, and the paper was in Just Xin’s blocky and neat handwriting.

_Gabriela and a bunch of orphans are threatening to kill each other, and both refuse to let the other go. The orphans stole something from her, but she has their leader. Need to solve without death._

Keir Lao roughly understood the situation, and resisted the urge to act rashly in trying to prevent senseless deaths. He thought,  _If there was an immediate risk of violence, Just Xin wouldn’t bother getting my help._

Further, he speculated as to whether the situation wasn’t in some way designed to trick him into signing the contract. He didn’t believe Just Xin would be in on it by his own accord, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t be tricked. However, his paranoia couldn’t prevent him from assessing his options.

“Let’s make our way to the market,” he said, wanting to limit knowledge from prying eyes within the clan, and to investigate what he could do.

Once a simple distance out, Keir Lao looked closely at the totem staff which Just Xin carried, squinting in the smouldering moonlight. Noticing, Just Xin held it out, and Keir Lao took it: stylized carvings of beast atop beast atop beast, and topped with some crowned chimera wearing hungry grins. He could not look at it for long before his gaze shifted away.

“From the orphans?” he guessed.

Just Xin nodded.

“This can’t be worth nothing to them,” Keir Lao thought aloud. “Why would they let you leave with it? Why would they let you leave at all?” That bothered Keir Lao the most, because he knew the greed of cultivators was without limit. He obsessed over the possibility of a bigger plan by the orphans, if the situation was real. “Are you confident Gabriela isn’t tricking us?”

His friend made eye contact, and patted Keir Lao’s shoulder.

Piecing together a few facts and assumptions, he began to draw a conclusion. One, with the exception of the knowledge and experience gained from age, cultivators did not appear extra mentally capable next to mortals like himself. Two, unless Iah involved himself directly, it was unlikely Gabriela’s clan was part of a grander scheme to trick Just Xin. Three, he could no more assume Iah was heavily involved than he could assume his entire life was the plot of an unfathomably powerful cultivator. Thus, he reasoned the situation was as described, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t more to it than first appearances.

 _There’s too many things I don’t know,_ he thought.  _What was it they stole from Gabriela? What was the purpose of letting Just Xin go? Why let him keep the staff?_ “Do you know what the staff does?” he asked.

One of Just Xin’s green qi ribbons passed through it. Then, he pointed from the end to his skull, bopped himself on the head, and closed his eyes as he swayed.

Which confirmed to Keir Lao it had value as a sort of magical artifact, but he couldn’t tell how much, or what other powers it could have. He could only think of two possibilities as to why the orphans would let Just Xin keep it and leave: either it had some entirely unknown ability to benefit the orphans by being away from them, or they were confident they would get it back.

_But if they know they’ll get it back, how? Either again an unknown power, or they have the force to take it back. Only, with that force, why couldn’t they defeat Gabriela?_

Keir Lao knew there had to be more to it, but ‘planned force’ otherwise made sense to him. If that was the orphans’ path, it would explain why they let Just Xin go, as then it would be easier to separately take down Gabriela, and take the staff back.

Further, he suspected that if he was correct, the orphans were tracking them. He briefly considered abandoning the staff, but decided instead to have it examined at the market by a sharp and shady All-Fang merchant he knew, who went only by the nickname ‘Hellhound’.

“Can you run us the rest of the way to the market?” Keir Lao requested, hoping they could outpace any potential tails.

Just Xin obliged, lifting Keir Lao and moving with incredible speed.

 

***

 

The market, an extension of the docks more protected, was concentrated with tents hosting many things, from talismans to techniques to temporary service from cultivators. Weaving throughout were food hawkers, pushing carts piled-high with the hollowed innards of magical beasts, shouting over one another for the crowds’ attention. A particularly loud one spoke of ‘revenge meats’, touting diced and smoked duck organs. The beast in question was clearly visible, the largest thing at the docks, already converted and resting amongst its fellow Dao Finders.

From Keir Lao’s experience, the more exclusive and trustworthy merchants – and Hellhound – were closer to the middle of the market, where they challenged prospective customers to prove their worth by making it through the dense mass of buyers and sellers. They wouldn’t waste a second on anyone too weak to force their way through, but Keir Lao had already learned to move behind the powerful, letting them clear his way. Just Xin was too large to do so, and too weak in comparison to the cultivators that tried to crowd their way in, so he waited for Keir Lao, keeping watch from natural vantage.

Despite the concentration of the powerful, it was one of the safest places in Panopticon, secured by Five-Eyed – guards to those weaker, scouts to those stronger – ready to punish any who violated the sanctity of the market.

Barely within, Keir Lao passed by Drum, sitting cross-legged atop a crate and holding a sign which read,  _Astounding Golden Core Cultivator, 50,000 Spirit Stone Contract, Non-Negotiable, Non-Extendable, Always Capable._ Drum’s eyelids twitched on seeing Keir Lao, but otherwise did not respond, keeping a wide smile on his face as he tried to catch the attention of the crowd.

Keir Lao, too, decided it was best to ignore one another.

He instead approached the small tent owned by Hellhound, whom he mutually respected for his conversational ability, trusting him not to be any less greedy than other cultivators, only to choose misdirection over threats.

Hellhound dropped his feet from his booth and ran a hand through his slicked red hair as Keir Lao approached. His expression then shifted from eagerness to recognition, upon which he resumed leaning back in his cheap chair. “Mortal Lao,” he greeted with a repeated impatient beckoning. “Here to swap more gossip? Don’t really have time, you know, unless you’re here to give me that meat-purchasing contract you promised me months ago. But, ah-hahaha, what’s that staff you have there? Always have time for other business. Five spirit stones. Wait, no, for you, seven! Ten if you hand it over this second. Deal?” His multicolored outfit of many thin open robes, over a black vest, shook as he chattered.

Keir Lao stood, feet planted wide, in front of the booth. He said, “I want to know what it can do before I decide to sell it.”

“Seven it is then. Hand it over, don’t be shy.”

Keir Lao did, secure that he was still considered the owner unless he signed a contract. At the same time he asked, “Have you ever been in a lethal standoff with another cultivator?”

“Too many to count, mostly from the war.” Hellhound gnawed the staff, his sharp teeth unable to leave a mark. “Good quality, clearly magical,” he remarked.

“Did any of those end without the other cultivator dying?”

“Most of the time they died when I got backup. A few went another way, where a furious magical beast arrived and we both ran away.” He replied, then inspected the staff further. “Fancy design, and the wood’s pretty old. Bet a collector would pay well for those alone.”

Keir Lao considered the possibility of frightening everyone without trying to kill them. His contract included a Dao Finder, but he knew he wouldn’t be allowed to use it in the city. He could hire a powerful cultivator as well, though it meant taking along someone he didn’t trust. His biggest problem with both solutions was needing to sign the contract too early. He asked, “What if there wasn’t a beast or other threat, can you think of any way you’d both live then?”

Hellhound rolled the staff over in his hands, and began tapping it against his many goods. Glass pill bottles rang, robes fluttered, other weapons thudded. “Wasn’t from the war, but one time I did seduce–”

“Any other way? Maybe from an outside source?”

“Not from experience, but friends have told me plenty of their own stories. Sometimes it’s a fantastic cultivation technique or artifact that let them escape. Other times they encountered great fortune and worked together. Usually they fought later. Only other thing I recall was an absurd tale involving a third cultivator who insulted both parties so severely, they lost all will to fight.” Hellhound then handed the staff back to Keir Lao. “Dunno how you got your hands on it but I’m impressed. It’s just a fancy weapon, though. Seventy spirit stones, or eighty if you sell right now.”

 _It seems unlikely I find a solution without signing the contract, even if it’s only to bribe the orphans,_  Keir Lao considered. He nodded and said, “I know it disrupts qi, so I think I’ll see if anyone else gives me a better offer.”

“Oh ha, you got me you clever mortal you. That’s not something I’ve encountered before, so no telling how much it could really be worth. Might be less than seventy, so don’t think I’m not taking a risk here. Out of respect, but also that risk, I’ll offer one hundred. For a mortal like you, that would set you in luxury for your short life. No need to thank me.”

“Can it do anything else, though?” Keir Lao asked.

“If it does, I can’t tell,” Hellhound said. Keir Lao raised an eyebrow at him. He shrugged. “I’m being honest, and I’ll even let you ask any other merchant here if you don’t believe me. Make sure to come back when you’re done, and sell it to me in apology. If any offer you more, bring proof and I’ll match it. All-Fang’s honor.”

 _Even if the orphans don’t realize how much the staff is worth, that’s not enough to buy them out. Though, if they’ve been following us, would they be watching me right now?_ To see if he couldn’t get a response from them if they were, he said, “One hundred and ten, and I’ll sell without a question more.”

Hellhound laughed. “You’re learning! Deal.”

Someone Keir Lao could not see pulled at Hellhound’s robes from behind. Hellhound said, “I’ll get to you soon. First come, first serve, after all.”

Keir Lao craned his neck but was still unable to tell who it was, but had his strong suspicion it was an orphan trying to distract Hellhound from the sale. He took a half tael of silver from his pocket, his entire fortune, and laid it upon the booth. He said, “Yours if you move over enough that I can see your other customer.”

He stepped aside, revealing a shocked boy, who immediately ran off.

Rather than trying to chase him through the crowd, Keir Lao called after him, “If you talk to me, I can be convinced to give it back!”

The boy did not respond, and vanished into the heavy flow of cultivators, using the same tactics Keir Lao had to enter.

Keir Lao caught Just Xin’s gaze, and pointed in the direction the boy had gone, then at the staff. Just Xin moved as quickly as he could around the outside of the area, which was slow given the bustle even that late into the night.

“What in Pangaea are you up to, stealing magical weapons from brats? More importantly, are you still selling?” Hellhound inquired.

“Maybe later,” Keir Lao gave as a passing remark as he walked calmly after the kid, knowing it was up to Just Xin if they could catch him.

 _They were watching but also delaying, so they plan to take the staff back, but they don’t have the strength. That doesn’t mean they’re not trying to find a way. Could they be waiting on more powerful backup?_ Keir Lao felt it was overwhelmingly likely, and that if he didn’t get answers, more than Gabriela or the orphans would be hurt.


	6. 01:06 - Chills & Fever

The underneath of Panopticon was made entirely of rough purple stone, and was many times colder than the trapped heat of outer night. Keir Lao, again carried by Just Xin, saw the orphan enter, but could no longer find him.

Physically impenetrable fog covered the entrances to an endless number of immortal caves. Each was rented to a wealthy cultivator without a clan or sect in Panopticon, as a space to cultivate peacefully. The fog, a pure white, spilled to the branching halls with an ethereal chill.

Merchants sat sparsely throughout in meditative silence, not so much as cracking open an eye as Just Xin sped through. Customers were even sparser, moving with deliberation, mostly browsing. Lanterns, burning filled with fat, offered the only light.

"Have you been down here before?" Keir Lao whispered.

Just Xin shook his head.

Keir Lao wondered,  _Either the boy ran down here only to escape, or he has another purpose, maybe related to the orphans' backup?_  Fleshy bloated vats of blood were the most common item he saw for sale.  _He could have ran anywhere to lose us. He ran here. There must be a reason. Meeting with other orphans on tasks, at least?_

That, he figured, offered him a good question for a merchant. They passed by more than a few until Keir Lao noticed one he felt vaguely familiar, a middle-aged looking woman, a Spine-Haired demon, with hair spines thick and jet-black. She was meditating like the others, but idly petting a horned rabbit in her lap, and was surrounded by other reanimated magical beasts. A crane atop a miniature potted pine tree stood out. The undead beasts watched them approach with bloodshot eyes, in perfect sync. A sign read,  _Lin's Puppets_.

Keir Lao then recalled her. The last time he had been in Panopticon, he'd seen her speaking with Hellhound, accompanied by an equally bizarre menagerie. "Just Xin, let's ask her for directions."

Just Xin stopped, and lowered Keir Lao to the floor.

They approached Lin. Smiling, Keir Lao asked, "Honored Puppeteer Lin, I am a friend of Hellhound's, and was hoping you could assist me; have you seen a boy pass by, and do you have an idea where he might have gone to meet with others?"

She remained meditating. Her puppets spoke distinctly in unison, artificially chipper, "What is he up to now? Hehehe." Keir Lao's skin crawled; he had never heard of magical beasts speaking in any tale. Even Just Xin flinched. "You're impressed. Hehehehe. The boy did pass, and there is only one place sought here beyond the caves and halls. Follow the left hand wall and you'll reach the industry."

Keir Lao bowed, and Just Xin followed. "Thank you for your assistance, honored Puppeteer Lin."

Her puppets laughed again, sound lingering behind them.

They kept left, eventually reaching something like a larger immortal cave entrance, but with a cyan fog they rushed through.

The underground room was filled with massive metal furnaces, cauldrons, and boilers, from floor to ceiling, clearly heated but with the room still cold. Sand to glass, plants to pills, and blood to blood were processed through them, run by a dizzying array of cultivators.

The outskirts of the room held merchants like the halls, but up and active, either selling raw materials or buying processed goods with alacrity. Servants jumped the purchases through massive holes in the ceiling, covered by the same cyan fog.

Keir Lao had trouble keeping track of anybody in the mess, and wondered how he would find the orphan.  _Explains part of why he chose here, and everyone is too busy to talk. There's also no guards here. Not just us, but isn't this a good place to avoid anyone noticing you?_ Keir Lao then paid closer attention to the merchants, and realized between the constant stream of buying and selling goods, they would sometimes make subtle and brief hand contact with their servants or customers.

 _Smuggling_.

He realized the orphans must use the place to pawn their stolen goods. If there would be anyone interested in helping them, either it was a merchant who didn't want to lose their patronage, or a cultivator they could buy the services of if they collected enough spirit stones. He further accounted for the theft from Gabriela, and thought it possible they were trying to sell whatever they stole.

The space was thundering with activity, but Keir Lao was listening for only one thing, the enthusiastic hustling of a merchant making insane profit. "Go where it's loudest," he had to shout directly in Just Xin's ear.

It didn't take long before they found the boy. He was next to two other orphans, a girl and an older boy, who was clutching a jade slip with a manic expression. Just Xin rushed towards them. The younger boy noticed with a panic, tapping the shoulders of the other two. They whispered something between themselves and put their hands together, the slip unseen between them. When they withdrew, each ran through a different corridor.

Keir Lao knew jade slips were not used unless the amount was truly staggering. He thought,  _Giving back the staff is useless._ The orphans could purchase not only Gabriela's death, but Just Xin's and Keir Lao's, for but offending them.

Without time to think it through, Keir Lao took a guess who had the slip, a one in three chance, and had Just Xin chase after the oldest boy, who was also the fastest of the three.

The boy glanced behind him. Blood began to trail from the corner of his mouth as he went faster still. Yet, Just Xin managed to catch up and tackled him, holding him with qi ribbons and peeling open his fists.

Empty.

His pockets, empty.

Empty, empty, empty!

Filled was Keir Lao's mind with the dread of dying. The other orphans were already long gone with their money, and they would hire a cultivator, and that would mean Keir Lao's death. "Why?!" he screamed into the boy's face and, without thinking, raised his arms – and the staff – as he yelled.

His desperation echoed through the cold hall. The boy only whimpered, his eyes reflecting Keir Lao's fear.

Just Xin let go of him, and he wasted no time in escaping. A palm rested onto Keir Lao's shoulder, but he could not calm himself as he began to rant, "We need to go to the guards like the note said! We need to tell them about Gabriela, because that's where the cultivator they hire is going first!" He pulled out Just Xin's letter. "You didn't write down where she is! That's okay, that's okay! We can get something to write it on the way back up!"

He looked up towards Just Xin, whose eyes were wet with forming tears. The hold on Keir Lao's shoulder tightened.

"You don't understand! It's not about hurting the orphans! They have who knows how much money and are going to contract someone who could kill Gabriela in an instant! Then you and me, to tie up loose ends! You know how cultivators are! We need to alert the guards or we're all dead! You'll be dead! I'll be dead!"

In half panic, half unwillingness, using the contract funds did not cross Keir Lao's mind or lips.

Just Xin wavered. His grip loosened, tightened, loosened again. He wiped the tears from his eyes, and then Keir Lao's tears. Just Xin nodded.

_I was crying?_

Only then did Keir Lao thoughts reform and extend. He took a breath, two, three, repressing his fear long enough to somewhat clear his mind. He said, "Immediately after, we should go there ourselves, to meet up with Gabriela and stop any orphans from being hurt."

 

***

 

Gabriela's mood had passed from irate, to merely exhausted. She had not slept at all the night before when watching over Keir Lao, and Lilli's constant barrage of insults long ago slipped from infuriating to mind numbing. She stayed alert only so she did not accidentally kill her hostage.

"...and your uniform looks like you sleep in it!" Lilli exclaimed. How or why the teen felt like continuing her slander when her life was on the line, Gabriela did not know.

"Be silent," she snapped for the first time in over half an hour.

"Aww, did you finally figure out nobody is coming to help you?" Lilli laughed, and the circle of orphans joined. "If you let me go, maybe I can convince them to go easy on you?"

Gabriela was going to respond again, but then shouting issued from afar. She focused in that direction, but made sure to keep an eye on Lilli.

A second later, orphans were knocked many meters high, flailing as they crashed back down. The others zipped away, fleeing. Lilli's face grew solem, but with a sharp turn towards fearful as jets of white fire washed over the present children, leaving only charred corpses.

 _Unnecessary, now Just Xin will trust me less_ , Gabriela thought. Then she began to make out the figures through the smog.  _Oh, no_.

With a sadistic glee he failed to conceal behind a stern expression, a Four-Eyed man moved into the now orphanless clearing. He barked to his troops, "Kill the rest," and they ran back into the smog to obey. He then fixed himself towards Gabriela. "Why am I not surprised it's the ever-incompetent Gabriela? Was getting your brother killed not enough?"

"Virgil," she said, doing her best to not sound ungrateful towards her miserable officer from the war. She wasn't out from the forbidden zone yet, where Many-Eyed gazes could barely penetrate, and where she could still end up an 'unfortunate casualty'.


End file.
